I have worked in both mediums, by the way, using still and video. To shoot a news story or a documentary, or even a film you use the pictures and sound to tell your story. You capture a series of events that tie together into a story. You’ll show someone running down the hallway toward a door then move to a shot of the door handle where the hand grabs and turns then cut to a shot of the opposite side of the door and the person runs through.
A still captures a moment in time but in essence tells the entire story in one frame. The best still photographers that I’ve known can do this and make it look like no effort whatsoever. My daughter posted the above photo to my Facebook page because, in her words, “our family in a nutshell.”
It’s true, too. Hannah, the wild, carefree, could almost care less kind of girl and very silly on the left. Abbi on my right, smiling and happy. Noah, probably not knowing what’s going on and sulking. Sam, just happy and carefree.
It’s an old photo, too, from years ago. It’s almost prophetic in a way because we aren’t really much different. Noah has had his behavioral issues. Sam is . . . well, Sam. Hannah has had her carefree-life become more care-less life. Abbi . . . well, I watch her go to college in just another year. We’re on our way to New York this weekend just to see if she likes the school there.
So what makes this such a great shot? It’s that captured moment. I don’t even remember when this was taken but it’s obvious that we’re all acting the way we do today. Even after losing what we have, it’s nice to know that we’re not really all that different than we’ve always been.
We’re stronger together than when we’re apart.
